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Gafford scores 21 to lead Arkansas past No. 14 Auburn, 91-82

Arkansas Gafford Football

FILE - In this Dec. 9, 2017, file photo, Arkansas forward Daniel Gafford drives to the hoop against Minnesota in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Fayetteville, Ark. Gafford arrived at Arkansas with some uncertainty about how quickly he could acclimate to the college game. The 6-foot-11 freshman has quickly put any doubts to rest, shooting nearly 70 percent from the field and leading the surging Razorbacks with 26 dunks through 10 games. (AP Photo/Michael Woods, File)

AP

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- Daniel Gafford had 21 points and 10 rebounds to lead Arkansas to its sixth win in seven games with a 91-82 victory over No. 14 Auburn on Tuesday night.

Gafford was 10 of 15 from the field, including seven dunks, and matched his career high with seven blocks for the Razorbacks (21-9, 10-7 Southeastern Conference), who won for the fourth time at home over a ranked team this season.

Jaylen Barford and Daryl Macon each topped the 1,000-point mark in their second seasons at Arkansas, with Barford finishing with 20 points and Macon 16. The seniors are the sixth and seventh players in school history to score more than 1,000 points in only two seasons.

Mustapha Heron scored 28 points and Jared Harper had 20 to lead the Tigers (24-6, 12-5), who could have clinched at least a share of the regular season SEC title with a win. Horace Spencer added 12 points in the loss for Auburn, which shot just 34.4 percent (22 of 64).

The defeat marked the first time Auburn has lost back-to-back games this season, and it was the school’s third in its last four games.

BIG PICTURE

Auburn: The Tigers were trying to match the school record for SEC road wins in a season against Arkansas, a team Auburn defeated 88-77 at home on Jan. 6. Auburn came into the game 5-3 on the road in conference play, the only school with a winning road mark in the league, but it only led briefly in the opening minutes on Tuesday and was unable to recover after Arkansas built a 19-point lead in the second half.

Arkansas: The Razorbacks entered the game 30th in the NCAA’s RPI ratings and likely well on their way to the NCAA Tournament following a road win at Alabama over the weekend. The win over the Tigers improved Arkansas to 15-2 at Bud Walton Arena this season and all but assures the school of reaching the tournament for a third time in four seasons, the Razorbacks best run since three straight appearances from 2006-08.